Adding FireWire and USB drives

Want to add a FireWire hd and a USB floppy drive to my Mac Pro.
Should I use a powered hub?
I've heard of powered hubs blowing the Mac input ports.
Already have the USB floppy drive. It's power consumption is listed as 2.5 watts.
Any reccommendations on powered hub?
Any reccommendations on a FireWire hd?

I don't use hubs. You can get a FW800 or combo FW800 w/ USB2 from OWC and sold by Aaxeon for $109-124.
I have over half a dozen FW800 drives. All direct connect (only use 4 at a time obviously). And never mix consumer electronics w/ FW hard drives on the same bus, or at least sharing a hub or uplink.
Lot of good FW cases http://www.macsales.com
They also have Quad interface SATA-FW800-USB2 if you need that.
FW - definitely stay with Oxford 911+ for 400, 912 for FW800, or 924 for Quad interface. I am not a fan of dual drive case with "firmware RAID" which use Oxford 922 chip in the FireWire bridge. And it is the bridge chip that makes all the difference.

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Journaling External FireWire and USB 2.0 Hard Drives?

I have several FireWire and USB 2.0 Hard Drives which I have always formatted as "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)".
I have been told that journaling is a waste of time with external HDs and, if anything, will slow them down slightly.
What is the general consensus on this forum?

Thank you for the swift response Malcolm.
I better explain why after all these years I am having doubts.
I am awaiting the delivery of a new piece of kit - a Western Digital HD TV Media player. Basically, you put your hi-def videos (H.264) on a USB 2.0 HD, plug it into the media player which is then plugged into your HDTV.
I have got hold of the manual which says that the supported USB file systems are "FAT32, NTFS and HFS+ (no journaling).
So I was wondering whether I will have to format the HD without Journaling to make it work?

Seeking reliable firewire and usb 2.0 combo cardbus card

Subject line says it all, or mostly so. I have an IoGear GUF202 pcmcia card with two USB 2.0 ports, one six-pin FireWire port, and one four-pin FireWire port. Its USB 2.0 services are not reliable; sustained transfers freeze my 1Ghz Titanium PowerBook G4. I've seen online several other cards from different manufacturers with the same form factor, but haven't yet found one with the preferred NEC chipset for USB services.
Can anyone offer a recommendation -- and a source? Swapping separate FireWire and USB 2.0 PC cards is becoming a pain.

Hi Jamie,
Could be many things, we should start with this...
"Try Disk Utility
1. Insert the Mac OS X Install disc that came with your computer, then restart the computer while holding the C key.
2. When your computer finishes starting up from the disc, choose Disk Utility from the Installer menu. (In Mac OS X 10.4 or later, you must select your language first.)
Important: Do not click Continue in the first screen of the Installer. If you do, you must restart from the disc again to access Disk Utility.
3. Click the First Aid tab.
4. Click the disclosure triangle to the left of the hard drive icon to display the names of your hard disk volumes and partitions.
5. Select your Mac OS X volume.
6. Click Repair. Disk Utility checks and repairs the disk."
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106214
Then Safe Boot from the HD, (holding Shift key down at bootup), run Disk Utility in Applications>Utilities, then highlight your drive, click on Repair Permissions, reboot.
The usual reason why updates fail or mess things up, is if Permissions are not fixed before & after every update, with a reboot... you may get a partial update when the installer finds it doesn't have Permissions to change one obscure little part of the OS, leaving you with a mix of OS versions.
Some people get away without Repairing Permissions for years, some for only days.
If Permissions are wrong before applying an update, you could get mixed OS versions, if Directory is the slightest messed up, who knows!
If many Permission are repaired, or any Directory errors are found, you may need to re-apply some the latest/biggest updates.

Firewire and USB not usable

my friends machine is no longer using devices connected to the firewire and USB ports. Here is the description of troubleshooting steps so far. Any other suggestions?
--- snip ---
suddenly my G5 tower stopped recognizing any firewire device... no harddisk no soundcard.... also the same harddisk is not recognized via USB....
BUT.... the USB ports recognize USB sticks, mac keyboard, mouse.. no problemo.
also.. at the same moment the built in soundcard (mac av) stopped working, AND the internal CD drive !!!
i tried : flashing the PRAM ... on boot up hold down command, option, P, and R until the machine reboots it's self then let off the keys...
and; resetting the PMU:
1. If the computer is on, turn it off.
2. Disconnect ALL cables from the computer, including peripherals and power.
3. If possible, move the computer to a place where you are not standing on carpet.
4. Open the case and ground yourself by touching part of the metal frame inside the computer.
5. Find the Cuda or PMU button
6. Press the Cuda or PMU button ONCE. Do not press the button more than once before starting the computer up again.
7. Wait 10 seconds, then reconnect the cables you removed in step 2 and turn the computer on.
and i tried: resetting NV-RAM
Re-start holding the O,F, option, and command keys until a white screen is reached, this will be the open firmware
screen. You will be prompted to release keys at this point.
Type in the command line, reset-nvram. Press enter, next command line type in, reset-all and the computer will re-boot.
so.... i have no more solutions at this point !!!

gromit95 wrote:
replaced battery did not fix problem
condition of new battery questanable exp date march 2010 but it was a new battery
fred
That date code was probably the build date code, rather than the expiration. This would be true for either the Tadiran or Saft batteries. The lithium batteries have a shelf life of up to 10 years.

Firewire and USB

In my process of researching to buy a new Intel Macbook I've discovered that there is only one firewire port, two USB 2.0 ports, and no pcmcia port.
Here's my problem. This laptop will replace my old powerbook that I use for recording audio. I need one bus for audio to enter the laptop and one bus to access my external hard drive to write the audio. I currently have a firewire bus card in the pcmcia slot and use the firewire port for the other bus on my powerbook. This optimizes the amount of data that Logic can process. My worries with the new macbook is that USB 2 is typically slower than firewire. So using the firewire and USB 2.0 ports may slow me down. I know the old powerbooks with USB 2.0 had issues with the USB 2.0 bus being really slow compared to PCs. Was this problem ever fixed? Does anyone have any experience with this or any suggestions? I know I could just buy a macbook pro, but I really didn't want to spend that much money.

Actually there's more than just another FW port. It's a FW800 port, ExpressCard/34 expansion slot, faster and better GPU with more VRAM, faster CPU, more RAM, bigger hard drive, and higher resolution screen.
You're buying a business computer. That means you are making an investment. You can write off the investment which reduces taxes. Doesn't it make better sense to be dollar wise rather than penny foolish? Over a three year write-off period you're bartering over $250 per year.
The MacBook has no expansion future whereas the MacBook Pro does.
However, this is ultimately your decision. All I wanted to do was point out the benefits of the MBP over the MB. I should probably stop here lest I sound like I'm making a sales pitch - which I'm not. I own a MacBook and two MBPs. I like them both.
Why reward points?(Quoted from Discussions Terms of Use.)
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How do you reset the firewire and USB? My ports are intermittent. I suppose

How do you reset the firewire and USB ports? My ports are intermittent. I suppose it could be a hardware isssue, but still wonder if I can reinstall/reset the software without reformatting my drive.

Hello! Resetting the ports is done by resetting the pmu. press the button once with all external cables unhooked. Below is a pict of an example of the pmu location. Also an intermittent problem is often a bad cable. Tom
[IMG]http://img470.imageshack.us/img470/1623/mddlogicbd4ga.jpg[/IMG]

10.5.2 lockup and USB drive problems

My install of the update went fine. However, I've had a few of problems since the upgrade.
Once, I couldn't eject a thumb drive. Applications began locking up until I pulled the drive without ejecting it. I also had a time where I couldn't eject my iPod until I rebooted the system.
My recent problem was that the screen saver locked up while importing an iMovie HD project into iMovie 08. I haven't had that since I installed the firmware update on my iMac. I had to power cycle it.
Just a few flaky problems but they seem to be getting worse.
Anybody else with these issues?

Maybe your update didn't go as well as you think. Did you repair your hard drive and permissions before updating? If not you may have updated a somewhat corrupted system that is now even more akilter. I suggest giving that a try:
Repairing the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger and Leopard.) After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer. Now shutdown the computer for a couple of minutes and then restart normally.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior (4.0 for Tiger, and 4.1 for Leopard) and/or TechTool Pro (4.6.1 for Leopard) to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.

Firewire and USB ports not recognizing devices

All of a sudden, some of our MacBooks don't recognize firewire and usb devices. It's weird, but after about a week, one of the MacBooks suddenly started recognizing a video camera, again, but it's troubling because my users need to be able to import movies and pictures from digital devices.
We ran the updates, and it did not help. We have been using these devices with our MacBooks for over a year, and this happened at the worst possible time. Any ideas?
I've tried both self- and AC-powered devices, rebooted, powered off and on, made sure everything is plugged in, etc.

Try Reset SMC. http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964
Choose the method for:
"Resetting SMC on portables with a battery you should not remove on your own".
Best.

Firewire and USB PCI Upgrade for PowerMac G5

Firewire and USB PCI Upgrade for PowerMac G5
I am looking to add more Firewire 400 and USB 2.0 ports to my Dual 2.7 PowerMac G5. I don't need a combo card (two separate cards is fine). I was wondering which brand card works well with my Mac and OS X. I had a FireWire card that I moved from my Dell to my PowerMac but had a number of problems with a couple connected HDD's and Final Cut Pro. The card which I think was from Belkin was listed as OS X compatible on its packaging.
Thanks for any guidance.
- Lou

Check out OWC/Macsales. Usually can't go wrong with Sonnet or an OWC "house branded".
http://www.macsales.com
Check out user reports for PCI G5 Compatibility
http://www.xlr8yourmac.com
I've used OWC FW800, Aaxeon PCIe, and a number of Sonnet USB2 (and combo).
Depends on how many USB2 ports, but for FW400 and USB2 combo should do fine. With FW800 I'd go for independent cards.

HT2494 How do I output video to a projector from my MacPro17 with only firewire and USB ports?

How do I output video to a projector from my MacPro17 with only firewire and USB ports?

No Mac Pro only has Firewire and USB. Perhaps you've misidentified the computer:
http://www.everymac.com/ should help.

IPod dock connected to both firewire and usb at same time

I have 3 ipods, 3G 4G 60gb photo 5G 80gb vid. I have a 5G doc and a dual usb / firewire cable. I prefer to manage my 3G and 4G using firewire as it is oh so quicker. However 5G requires usb2 only. I have a Apple 'dual' usb/firewire port cable that at the moment to use I alternate which socket is plugged into the front port of my PowerMac G5 as they are the only spare ports I have.
I just bought an Iomega Ultra Max which comes with a built in firewire and usb hub that means i now have enough ports to dedicate one of each to the ipods but want to use only one dock and so I would like to plug both the firewire and usb iPod cable into the hub and leave them there connected to the iPod dock. I know it won't cause problems when the 5G is connected as there is no hardware for firewire connection. But the 4G has both.. will I encountering a usb and firewire conenction cause problems and possible damage to the ipod or my PowerMac G5, will the 4G ipod use firewire in prefeance to USB if it will work???

Hi iPodista;
I would recommend very strongly that you don't even attempt do this. Generally cross connecting in this fashion is a very good way to get yourself into serious troble.
Allan

Itunes and usb drive

i got a new computer and i want to transfer all my music using a usb drive but once i plug the flash drive into my new computer, i can transfer all that music to itunes, but i can't seem to save it or get it to stay on itunes since when i disconnect that usb flash drive, it obviously can't locate those song files anymore.

Make sure under Advanced tab in iTunes>Preferences, +Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library+ is checked. Good luck!

Kernel task when using Firewire external usb drive

Hi, I'm using an external 320GB Iomega USB drive that has both usb and firewire cable sockets. When i connect the drive with the firewire cable to my mac (MacBook Pro) the CPU usage increases. Specifically, kernel_task usage goes up and stays constant in around 3% and sometimes it goes higher and stays high for longer periods.
Does anyone knows why this occurs and how to avoid a kernel_task CPU usage increase?
Greetings,
C.

It's probably Spotlight Indexing the external drive, if you don't want this to happen open System Preferences/Spotlight, click the Privacy Tab then drag the external drive icon from your Desktop into that box.

Seagate 7200.8 (firewire and usb) won't unmount

I have a Seagate 7200.8 300 GB PATA hard drive that won't dismount. I have 3 different brands of external firewire/usb cases and this particular hard drive just won't dismount while installed in any of them and it doesn't matter if I have it connected to firewire or usb. When I drag it to the trash nothing happens and the drive stays mounted. If I then turn it off I get the message warning me about all the bad things that will happen if I don't dismount first. The only safe way I know of to dismount it is to shutdown the mac and then turn off the hard drive. This is on a Powermac G5 Dual 2.0 (PCI, 4 ram slot) with 2.5 GB ram and a single internal 250 GB hard drive running 10.4.3 and all current updates.
Powermac G5 2.0 Mac OS X (10.4.3)
Powermac G5 Mac OS X (10.4.3)

send it to a data recovery company if you don't have a backup. If you dont have a backup, you'll wish you did when you see how much money it costs to retrieve data off a damaged HDD (if they can even retrieve a portion or all of it). Google "hdd data recovery" for lists of companies.

MacPro Front Firewire and USB Ports Acting Up

Devices connected to the front firewire 800 and USB ports on my MacPro are acting up. (2x2.66GHz dual-core, early 2007) I put a firewire rugged LaCie onto the firewire port and the MacPro hung. The drive works fine on my MacBook. On the MacPro, the CPU on all cores ran up to 100% and the machine became inaccessible. I put a 80 GB video iPod on the USB port and it could not sync without errors. Could not eject the iPod - OS X reported that an application was accessing the device, even though nothing was running.
It seems as though connecting devices to the front ports initiates a process that does not behave and/or teminate correctly. All other ports work OK, including those on the back of the machine and the USB and firewire ports on my Cinema display.

OK, a couple of things. First, have you tried another USB cable? You may have one that is flaky at USB2 speeds which can cause all sorts of mischief.
Have you tried both "free" USB ports on the machine, or the USB port on the machine that you have the keyboard hooked to?
Finally, you may find some information in your system log that would point to the answer.
In my own experience, USB2 on the G5 has not been capable of reaching serious transfer rates. While I get transfer rates close to 60 MB/sec through FW800, I have never gotten more than about 13 MB/sec through USB2, using several flavors of external drive/SATA toaster/enclosure interfaces. However, I have also had bad USB cables lock the machine up like the Tin Man.

Adding FireWire and USB drives

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